•and on Yale in both directions between Winvale Avenue and Walnut Street.

The ordinance would increase the speed limit by 10 mph along two stretches: From 40 mph to 50 mph on southbound California Avenue between Innovation Drive and Theory Street, and from 50 mph to 60 mph on eastbound University Drive between Michelson Drive and the I-405 onramps.

The speed limit would go up 5 mph along a dozen other stretches.

The council did a first reading of the proposed ordinance during its Tuesday session, and directed Senior Transportation Engineer Jim Lizzi to do more research. The council asked him to report back in about six months with a review of specific street segments and intersections.

More research was needed, Mayor Sukhee Kang said.

The traffic survey's results, along with the recommended speed limits changes, were presented on Tuesday.

However, as proposed, the changes to the speed limits would make driving inconsistent along major roadways, some City Council members said.

"Are we not allowed to substitute rational thinking for the Caltrans code if it makes sense?" Mayor Pro Tem Beth Krom said.

The survey looked at 36 road segments and came up with speed limits based on average observed traffic and the Caltrans Policy Directive, which says speed limits should be rounded to the nearest 5 mph, according to Lizzi. However, some major streets and single street loops would change speeds through intersections if the ordinance passed.

For example, California Avenue would increase from 40 mph to 50 mph just between Innovation and Theory, and Turtle Rock Drive would change from 40 to 45 mph in the middle of the street loop.

"Most people drive that loop at a consistent speed," Krom said.

Lizzi defended the survey by saying its recommendations are meant to aid public safety officers in controlling traffic, but he acknowledged that the recommended changes were inconsistent on some streets. He asked the council for specific examples of streets and times of day in order to do more research.

Councilman Steven Choi brought up a stretch of Harvard south of California. A segment of the street goes from 45 mph to 25 mph and back to 45 mph as it passes a senior center.

Choi said he never observed drivers slowing down to 25 mph, but he did see officers waiting in that area to ticket people.

"Even though the intent was good," Choi said, "practically if you observe, I don't know how many older people are walking on the street there."